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B2B Search Engine Marketing - Where are We in 2007? |
| Thursday, October 25, 2007 |
B2B search engine marketing - where are we in 2007? Over the past year or two, we have seen online marketing become more popular with the B2C genre. Yet in the B2B arena we are still seeing a large number of companies who are hesitant to participate in Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising and more so with SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Our experience shows that B2B marketers are not part of the early adopter stage when it comes to search engine marketing.
Maybe it's because with some B2B companies when they finally understand the value and necessity of search marketing they have deep enough pockets to purchase an SEO firm or work with an agency that has purchased an SEO company.
Why are B2B companies so timid when it comes to investing in an online marketing campaign? Well the answer is simple. The stakes are high and really online marketing (in terms of SEO and PPC) is still fairly new to traditional marketing managers and C-Suite Executives. By nature these traditional marketing managers and C-Suite Executives do not like change. "If it's not broken don't fix it." I've written numerous articles on the importance of a well-balanced online marketing campaign specifically on organic search as it pertains to SEO. So I'm not going to go into it in great detail here, simply put the importance and benefit of SEO as it relates to B2B marketers can be summarized in the following:
- The Internet is not going away - Online marketing will always be there in some manner (whether it is through organic optimization, paid inclusion, universal search, widget marketing, social media marketing etc.)
- Online Marketing (SEO) is cost effective - when compared to traditional marketing media, SEO is very cheap. PPC can be expensive but only if it is mismanaged.
- Competition is getting worse - with technology and innovation comes an easier way for businesses to compete. The fact is that if you are not working on a sound, strategic online marketing plan now, you will need to in the future to simply keep up to your competition. If you are not promoting your brand through the YouTubes, Google's, Facebooks etc. chances are your competition is.
- Traditional Methods of Lead Generation will not be able to compete with online lead generation - The Web is a vast place visited by billions of people. A few of these "people" may be looking for your product or service. Online marketing through SEO and PPC provides you with a means to intercept your target market through thousands of different avenues via the Internet (whether it is through vendor sites, re-seller site, search engine results pages, Facebook Groups, YouTube videos, Google AdWords etc. The fact is you cannot afford to not have dedicated marketing budget for SEO and PPC.
As Bill Gadless pointed out in his article "The true state of B2B Search Engine Marketing":
According to MarketingSherpa Search Marketing Benchmark Guide 2008, “Small B-to-B marketing organizations are spending a bit more than one-fifth of their (marketing) budgets online, with one-third of that going to paid search and less than 10% of it going to SEO” If you want to be successful in the B2B arena, you need SEO, you need PPC and you need adequate budget to perform. Do not expect to move mountains over night. Success tales time. The fact of the matter is, is that B2B marketers can no longer ignore search engine marketing. You must participate. SEO is a tough sell, but it must be sold to your company.Labels: B2B search engine marketing |
posted by Jody @ 1:18 PM   |
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| 3 Comments: |
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Great thoughts!!!!
The internet can be a complicated place - especially for anyone who doesn't have a lot of experience or knowledge about modern technology.
Sky Power
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I agree wholeheartedly. The Internet (search engines) is the first place business owners/execs/buyers look to find products and services they need. B2B companies cannot afford to leave money on the table by continuing to ignore this.
B2B marketers who aren't already taking advantage of this need to put some time and money into SEO, PPC on major engines, and PPC in relevant vertical engines for more targeting and ROI - engines like Business.com, GlobalSpec.com, IT.com, and goWholesale.com.
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If you intend to make amount of profits you will need to learn the affiliate internet marketing tips that will give you a competitive edge. So here are few tips that seems to be very useful.
Bob
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Great thoughts!!!!
The internet can be a complicated place - especially for anyone who doesn't have a lot of experience or knowledge about modern technology.
Sky Power