Effective communication is the one path towards the bottom-line goals of a marketing or Public Relations (PR) campaign. To reach these goals, today’s marketing and PR professionals must communicate effectively through digital marketing content, including webpages and online press releases. This makes a solid foundation of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and social media absolutely vital.
As social media helps to boost online awareness for an ever-expanding list of companies, it poses the simultaneous challenge of measurement. In an interview with eMarketer, Carol Kruse, Vice President of Global Interactive at Coca-Cola, stated, “Before you have ROI, you have to really understand how social media is driving your business.”
For B2B marketing programs, marked by traditionally longer lead times, thesocial mediameasurement challenge becomes even more pronounced. In essence, how can a company connect the dots between the online awareness generated by social media marketing and eventual sales?
Digital marketing’s importance in driving the success of a business cannot be overstated. In a previous post, data from a recent eMarketer survey cited Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and paid search as the most effective tactics for generating conversions, according to senior level marketing executives. Being found online quickly, whether via organic or paid search results, becomes even more critical for companies with a selective client base. One such example is Archway, a company that caters its services to the Fortune 1000. For more than 50 years, Archway has provided Fortune 1000 companies with marketing fulfillment services, including the execution and delivery of Point-of-Purchase (POP) signage and inventory management. Many notable companies working with Archway have been engaged with the company for several years.
In data cited by Forrester Research, US search marketing spend approached nearly $16 million in 2009. Per the graph below, this number is expected to rise exponentially, nearly doubling in size by 2014:
The reason behind this rapidly increasing budget allocation can be summed up succinctly and powerfully: return on investment. In a survey by eMarketer, 53% of senior level marketing executives across multiple industries point to Search Engine Optimization as the most effective online marketing tactic for generating conversions, while 49% point to paid search.
This week, Microsoft released the B2B social media whitepaper ‘Learn and Earn: A B2B Social Media Whitepaper from Microsoft Advertising.’ In this piece, author Mel Carson recounts the lessons learned and successes achieved from Microsoft’s foray into social media and blogging.
Many of the lessons learned by Microsoft in regards to blogging, such as establishing a strongly defined ROI to measure efforts, are the same guidelines that shape blog marketing best practices in programs offered by TopRank® Online Marketing. An example of such an integration is the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) program between TopRank and Microsoft Dynamics solutions provider InterDyn BMI, which features an added emphasis on blog marketing.
For nearly twenty years, staffing software provider eEmpACT, along with parent company and recruiting software developer Bond Talent US, have delivered to the needs of top staffing and human resources professionals nationwide.
Despite a downturn in the staffing industry in 2009, an Internet marketing program developed by TopRank® Online Marketing enabled eEmpACT to achieve new highs in search rankings and website inquiries. By renewing engagements with TopRank, and adding results-driven email marketing into the mix for Bond Talent US, both companies are well-positioned for success in 2010.
When small to midsized Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) search for products ranging from cable ties, to electrical connectors, to circuit breaker blades, they seek out Waytek, Inc.
To increase online referrals and organic search engine traffic, Waytek, Inc. recently engaged TopRank® Online Marketing to develop an Internet marketing and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) program. In functioning as an online marketing consultant, TopRank will optimize the expanse of product pages existing on the Waytek, Inc. website, while deploying a full- scale search strategy.
Despite being an ever-expanding and constantly evolving industry, finding and securing a job in public relations (PR) remains a challenging endeavor. This fact was not lost on the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). As a service to public relations professionals, the PRSA enhanced the usability of its Jobcenter. Of course, before PR professionals could use the Jobcenter to find jobs, the Jobcenter itself had to be found by PR professionals.
The following search engine optimization case study illustrates how TopRank® Online Marketing helped secure targeted keyword rankings for the PRSA Jobcenter, leading to visitor referral increases exceeding 400%.
Personalized search from Google, a new innovation ensuring search results are targeted to you and you alone, is causing shockwaves of uncertainty in regards to how it relates to Search Engine Optimization.
In reality, personalized search has been in play for well over a year, customizing search results for signed-in users based on everything from geography to browsing history. The difference now is that personalized search is in play whether or not users are logged into any Google account.
At the WebmasterWorld Pubcon conference in Las Vegas, TopRank’s CEO Lee Odden presented on how companies can drive more web site traffic through news optimization. NVI Solutions caught up with him to talk more about the intersection of Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Marketing and Online Public Relations in this video interview:
The audio on this interview is pretty low, so you’ll need to turn it up a bit. The one downside to a Flipcam
