Top Ten listing......hmmmmmmm?
This is my question...
I spend a fortune on SEO and now I am #1. If there are 976,840
businesses like mine on the internet, why is that I am # 1?
Am I the only one who cares about being #1? Are 970,000 other
business owners stupid? Are they all so poor they can't afford
to bid? Am I really #1? Why is it that the next 3 listings just
below mine are not the sites of my competitors but listing for
directories? Is it really possible that I am the only one who
understands search engine optimization? Or............
Maybe the the other sites have all the business they need, maybe
people are finding their sites by specifically typing in their
web address because someone told them to check it out. Maybe
their web address is bookmarked on their clients computers.
Maybe just maybe, their business came first and the website
followed. Which came first the chicken or the egg? The business
or the web site?
The search engines are charging me for everyone who peeks in my
store window whether they purchase or not. I focus my
advertising budget on getting internet traffic but in fact most
of that traffic does not translate into business. In addition,
the clients I get from the internet show no loyalty at all. Here
today.. gone tomorrow.
What is the point of becoming # 1? Volume of hits or volume of
sales?
It is crucial that those starting internet businesses understand
marketing, not just SEO.
I use about 75 different websites on a regular basis, but I have
visited about 275,000. Of the 75 that I use on a regular basis
most are businesses that I used prior to finding their internet
address phone company, gas company, bank, stores that I shop at
on a regular basis, etc. Many of the other sites I have
bookmarked, I use for their free services but have never
purchased anything from them. This includes games, internet
tools etc. Then there are about 10 sites that I actually found
as a result of a search engine and actually purchase from them
on a regular basis. 10 sites out of 275,000 + sites that I have
seen.
I think that it is crucial for net-preneurs to understand that
the internet is not a marketing solution it is a marketing tool.
It is a tool to market a business that has great customer
service, quality products, and pricing to match. Marketing your
business should start with marketing to family and friends, your
neighbors, and local customers and then move to include a
website to enhance customer service. Your primary goal should
always be to gain customer loyalty and to have enough business
to keep you happy but not to try to get 1000's of clicks from
people who are surfing the web. Look for Coke.com under soda, or
soda pop, or carbonated beverages, or cold drinks. They are not
even in the top 50. But look for them under Coke and there they
are! #1! Look for them under Coca Cola...there they are #1. The
business came first!