Sharp Bytes
Our online articles offer snippets of information to assist people in business and at home to get the most out of the Internet and email.
A win on Google!
Google is the most popular search engine in the World, so it’s no surprise that getting your website in pole position is highly desirable… as well as fiercely competitive.
For at least 6 months, Newcastle Wedding Industry Professionals remains in the number one position for ‘wedding newcastle’. Let me clarify that I’m referring to the 'organic' listings (free) - not the sponsored links.
In such a cut-throat industry this is an amazing result for a web site that relies mostly on keywords, content, popularity and some sneaky strategies by their guru website developer (hu, hum... that's me!) to keep it search engine optimised.
Whilst the result for NWIP is outstanding it is not an overnight success story. It has taken nearly to 2 years and there are no guarantees it will remain in pole position without due diligence and constant assessment.
Fast-tracking your way to the top...
For most other web sites it takes much more effort to get to No.1 and stay there. Despite every effort - ‘search engine friendly’ coding techniques, multiple submissions to search engines and various links from other websites - it can be a slow and painful process with no guarantees.
For an overnight result, Google Adwords is the best way to fast-track referrals to your website from Google. When you consider the time, effort and cost of implementing the ‘free’ strategies, a Google Adwords campaign can be relatively cost effective. Bear in mind that you are ‘targeting’ specific keywords that attract potential clients, so the ‘cost per click’ can be justified as well-spent advertising dollars.
Google Adwords in a nutshell:
- You create your own text ad and then specify search terms related to your business
- You define what you are willing to pay as a ‘cost per click’ for each search term you specify
- You can set a daily budget to ensure your ad-spend is capped; you can also specify a total budget
- Online reports detail how many ‘views’ and ‘click throughs’ each ad group receives
If you are considering a Google Adwords campaign for your website you need to determine an appropriate budget over a period, generally 3 months or more. Realistically, your budget should be at least $500-$1000 to make the campaign setup worthwhile. It can often take a month (give or take) to optimise your campaign so that you are not only receiving a steady amount of referrals, but targeting the right users.
If you decide to tackle the Google Adwords campaign on your own be prepared to do a lot of research, continual analysis and intensive ‘trial and error’ to get your campaign off and racing. You might first consider purchasing one of many helpful books on the subject. Amazon is a good place to start.
Otherwise you can engage your web developer or other search engine specialist to manage your Google Adwords campaign on your behalf. An experienced 'Adworder' will have a wad of tactics and tricks up their sleeve!
