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The
B2B Marketer’s Guide to Search Engine Optimization
Increase Visibility and Increase Profits
By Karen Breen Vogel
Click
here to download a PDF of this white paper.
No
one wants to be invisible – no company does either.
In this era of search engine marketing, it’s not only embarrassing
to have no corporate presence on Google, Yahoo!, and relevant vertical
search engines, it is a looming threat to the B2B marketer’s
job.
Enterprises
that fail to show up in the “organic listings” on the
key search engines run the risk of being considered irrelevant by
their prospects and even raising questions of confidence among their
existing clients..
Forward-looking
B2B marketers have recognized the clear case for “balancing
their portfolio” of Internet marketing investments by pairing
paid search with search engine optimization (SEO). As industry studies
show organic listings are 70-80% more likely to produce a click-through
than a paid listing.1 Acknowledging the cost-effectiveness and wider
coverage associated with such approaches, marketers have invested
in strategic and disciplined SEO programs that build on their particular
business strengths and objectives..
They
have gone beyond mere visibility to ensure that Internet search engines
are a powerful marketing channel – one that can drive not only
awareness and traffic, but qualified leads or sales as well. Smart
marketers are now capitalizing on the growing potential of SEO to
cultivate new clients and build profitable relationships.
Market Drivers: Paid
and Organic Listings
 While
marketing expenditures in older media decelerates, online spending
is expected to rise to $2.9 billion this year, according to market
research firm eMarketer.2.
Consider
this. More than 50% of Google’s target advertisers are B2B.
Nearly 38% of Yahoo’s advertisers are defined as B2B. What is
attracting them? Studies suggesting that nearly 64% of search engine
users are searching for business information.3.
In search
marketing, there are two types of presence on the search engines:
-
Paid listings
– also referred to as Pay Per Click (PPC) or sponsored
links – are obtained through bidding on ad placements for
one’s products, services or materials keywords on search
engines.
-
Organic listings
– also referred to as natural or free listings – that
have been obtained due to favorable rankings by a particular search
engine.
To grasp
the growing importance of organic search in the B2B arena, it’s
worth considering several key trends now influencing the online marketing
environment.
-
Paid Search
Costs are Increasing. The cost of customer acquisition
continues to rise for companies investing in paid search –
reaching levels that many marketers can no longer absorb.4 Why
are the costs rising? Mainly due to competition. Recognizing the
power of search engine marketing, companies are bidding aggressively
for key search terms – driving costs up in the process.
-
Paid and Organic
Listings are Reinforcing Each Other. Research has demonstrated
that paid listings are most effective when they are reinforced
by related organic listings – and vice versa. When a prospective
customer sees a range of ads or information about a particular
business in a single place that individual is increasingly likely
to click on the related links and explore the content.
-
Companies aren’t
Engaging Prospects at All Stages of the Buying Cycle through Current
Search Engine Marketing Efforts. B2B prospects tend to
spend a great deal of time gathering information on the Web –
conducting due diligence – especially during the consideration
phase of the buy cycle. Research has shown that is increasingly
important to have high visibility in the organic rankings during
this phase because organic listings tend to get clicked on far
more than paid listings. Given the relatively high stakes and
high costs of a decision, they are unlikely to make a decision
unilaterally. Typically, prospects must be touched multiple times
in a buying cycle before a deal is consummated. This creates a
need for visible placement in both paid and organic listings.
Confronting Today’s
Search Engine Marketing Challenges.
B2B
Marketers that stand to gain from effective search engine marketing
are often struggling with an array of key problems or challenges.
Among them:
The
Visibility Problem.
This problem emerges when a company has no presence in the search
engines relative to important keyword terms and phrases. When an accounting
software company does not appear after the search string “accounting
software” or a digging equipment manufacturer is nowhere to
be seen with the word “excavators,” there may be a problem.
Typically, this problem is going to be felt most severely by the B2B
marketer when the CEO inevitably asks, “Where are we? Are we
on the first page?”
While it may be embarrassing not to be ranked on the search engines,
this visibility is also taxing in terms of brand awareness. If prospective
clients don’t see a company ranked, they may perceive that it
is not a strong player in the relevant category. Like large industry
trade shows that have long been part of the B2B marketing mix, one’s
absence in the search engines may undermine credibility with existing
customers, particularly when other sellers do appear in a search involving
a relevant product category.
Without visibility on the search engines, it’s almost certain
that opportunities are being lost. Sales conversions ultimately depend
on both market awareness and a steady flow of traffic. Search engine
invisibility means prospects with a problem are often unaware of a
potential product or solution provider’s existence. There are
numerous examples of companies that have launched new businesses with
the search engines as their only demand generation vehicle and built
multi-million dollar businesses.
The
Relevance Problem.
B2B customers tend to have extended buying cycles, and are engaged
in complex and carefully considered decisions that typically involve
multiple people. The challenge for B2B marketers revolves around serving
up appropriate messaging and landing page content for the different
stages of this cycle.
Prospects for the accounting software firm’s products might
begin their search with terms like “audit,” “general
ledger” or “Sarbanes-Oxley” – some immediate
problem. Only later, when they are prepared to consider solutions,
will they search “accounting software.” The marketer’s
challenge is to attract attention at every key decision point..
The
ROI Problem.
Due to the long sales (buying) cycle associated with B2B, it is difficult
to show a clear cause and effect relationship between a particular
search and particular deal. As discussed, prospects are liable to
search multiple terms at different stages of the buying cycle as they
first seek to better understand their own problem, and, then explore
potential solutions. It is also necessary to nurture the relationship
along the way, which may involve e-mailing and an inside sales team
to follow the online inquiry forward.
Return on investment becomes a problem for B2B marketers if money
is flying out the door for paid search and an insufficient number
of deals can be attributed to those marketing expenses. They need
cost effective means of increasing lead generation – and lead
nurturing – if they are to successfully meet their objectives
while they build out a framework for measuring their eventual lead
closure rate.
What most companies in the B2B space have found is that organic listings
are more likely than paid listings to attract prospects at the early
stages of the buying cycle. Links to insightful content in the organic
listings will encourage prospects to visit a company’s Website
– and even provide contact information in exchange for something
of perceived value (such as a white paper, a research report or an
event invitation).
In order to meet their objectives for measurable performance, B2B
marketers will need to have a balanced portfolio of online investments
– enabling them to cost effectively appear in both the paid
and organic listings. The solution that will enable them to
achieve high rankings and more relevant click-thrus to their website
in organic search is search engine optimization.
THE 3 KEY BENEFITS OF AN SEO PROGRAM
Companies that engage in
a strategic and disciplined approach to SEO are seeking three core
benefits from such a program:
-
Increased Visibility.
B2B marketers have recognized the need to enhance their presence
in the search engines – a core gateway to brand awareness,
consideration, and, ultimately, lead generation. By ensuring one
is effectively indexed by the key search engines, one can increase
visibility and awareness in the organic, unpaid portion of the
search engine listings.
-
Increased Qualified
Traffic. Visibility leads to traffic – by moving
prospects from the search engines to a relevant Website or landing
page, companies gain the opportunity to interact with them and
turn them into qualified leads.
-
Increased Conversions.
Once prospects hit a Website, they are looking for sources of
value. By providing relevant value at the right time, companies
can generate a series of conversions. Whether the conversion is
an opt-in registration for a white paper, a request for a demo,
a sales inquiry, or an actual purchase online, marketing generates
the activity that will load the sales funnel and drive profitable
revenue.
With the customized use of a Web analytics tool, SEO programs
can be tracked and measured. They lend themselves to clear measurement
of marketing impact and return on investment through conversion
analysis of traffic to leads to sales. Indeed, they enable B2B
marketers to build a powerful pipeline, support the sales force
and accelerate the revenue generation process.
CASE IN POINT:
Large Commercial
Financial Services Organization
A large commercial finance lender vividly demonstrates the power of
search engine optimization. This organization, sought assistance from
ClearGauge to achieve improved non-paid (organic) listing rankings
on search engines. The unit, which targets corporate executives and
influencers seeking corporate financing and loans $10 million in size
or greater, was looking for a cost-effective way to enhance lead generation
through search engine marketing.
Specifically, this client sought to effectively identify the keywords
most salient to its business – optimizing its website structure
and content to improve rankings on these critical terms.
Having conducted a thorough assessment of the website and researched
keyword opportunities, ClearGauge determined the greatest potential
for site traffic improvement in various specific areas, and designed
and implemented a comprehensive search engine optimization program.
The program included:
-
Keyword List Creation
and Assessment of Current Website Rankings
-
Website Content &
Structure Analysis
-
Link Referral Assessment
and Program
-
Non Visible Website
Element/Formatting and Hidden Code Assessment
-
Paid Inclusion/XML/Trusted
Feed Need Assessment
-
Optimization Recommendations
and Action Plan
-
SEO Copywriting
-
Registration with Search
Engines & Directories
The results were clear
and impressive. ClearGauge’s alignment of relevant content,
coding, and link referrals to high potential keywords significantly
improved its client’s performance. The program has resulted
in a 333% increase of organic “first place” listings,
a 287% increase of listings in the “top five”, and a 355%
increase of the listings in the “top 10”. The increased
visibility has resulted in a remarkable 750% lift in qualified website
visitor traffic.
Still not convinced?
Evaluate the Opportunity Cost
If you’re still not sure
if optimizing your website to be more relevant on the search engines
is really going to have an impact on your revenue, calculate the opportunity
cost. The example below, a software company is considering if it should
invest in search engine optimization by examining two keyword phrases
that are relevant to their target market segments. Using a combination
of the Google Adwords tool to gauge the volume of searches per month
on those terms, engine share, the organization’s benchmark data (click-through
rate, average conversion rate, and average transaction amount), and
the equation below, you can quickly see the significant opportunity
that can come from ranking well on those key products and services.
In this particular example,
we chose a relatively low product price point. For many B2B marketers
with much higher product or service price points, the opportunity
lost from not ranking well on keyword terms and phrases is even greater.
Success Criteria: What
to Look for in a SEO Solution Provider
While some companies may
decide to use internal resources to embark on their SEO programs,
most companies will recognize the value of working with a specialized
firm that is deeply experienced in the intricacies, opportunities,
and pitfalls of search engine optimization. What criteria should B2B
marketers look for in a search engine marketing provider?
- Business Mindset. Look
for a solution provider that can build an SEO program within the
context of your core business objectives. Your solution provider
should take an analytical approach to value the pipeline and correlate
this activity to downstream closures and sales.
- Deep Expertise in B2B
Marketing. There are huge differences between B2B and B2C search
marketing. Marketers need to ensure their SEO partners have specialized
– and delivered results – in the B2B arena where decision
cycles are extended and decisions are complex.
- Deep Understanding of
Your Business. Ensure your solution provider will invest the time
and resources to understand your business including its strategy
and objectives, strengths and limitations.
- Strong Client Successes.
The best way to ensure that your prospective solution provider is
reputable and respected is through client references and testimonials.
- Ethical SEO Practices.
Beware of nefarious or unethical practices that can harm your company’s
reputation. Examine the solution provider’s client list to
obtain relevant references that can provide confidence.
These are the success criteria
that have enabled many B2B marketers to successfully leverage the
capabilities of SEO solution providers. Take these criteria to heart
and you will be in a position to identify and engage the right partner
for your objectives.
About ClearGauge
ClearGauge helps companies continuously improve their websites to
get better business results. As an online marketing services provider,
ClearGauge’s data-driven methodologies and approach help you
take action to improve your customers’ and prospects’
website experience to deliver quantifiable, bottom line results. Whether
you are seeking to grow your team’s skills or have us manage
it for you, ClearGauge offers you flexible options to work with us.
ClearGauge is recognized as a top interactive agency by B2B Magazine
for its focused and disciplined approach to delivering ROI through
strategic online marketing.
.
If you would like to discuss your company’s SEO challenges
and opportunities, contact one of our senior client specialists today
at
(312) 923-7604 or visit www.cleargauge.com
.
Click
here to download a PDF of this white paper. |
