NEW YORK (Feb. 26, 2009)—In a recession, marketers need to increase Website traffic and drive better conversions—and search marketing is the best customer acquisition tool in the online space. The appeal of search marketing means increased spending for all four options from 2008 through 2013. By 2013, when total US search marketing will reach nearly $23.4 billion, marketers will be spending more on search engine optimization (SEO) than on contextual advertising.
SEO improves organic listings. That’s vital, because Internet users prefer organic listings to paid listings, generally finding them more relevant than advertising. Therefore, they tend to click on organic results more often than on paid search ads.
For companies that especially need to retain customers due to limited customer spending in down times, marketers will look increasingly toward SEO as they try to find new business. As marketers better understand the purpose of Website optimization in their overall campaigns, spending for SEO will grow more each year than for the other three types of search marketing—and more than the total online ad market.
SEO is cost-effective but the effects take time. The results are gradual and improving organic rankings typically takes months. However, optimized sites do not drop off the first results page even when marketer spending slows or stops, like with paid search.
“Marketers who do SEO within their companies likely choose that option to keep costs down,” said David Hallerman, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the report “Search Marketing Trends: Back to Basics.”
“Marketers sometimes find the SEO process complex. Many often called it a ‘black box’ technique, since optimization requires deciphering the hidden ranking algorithms of search engines. For some marketers, that means full-blown SEO depends on help from an agency.”
SEO delivers long-term results that support any search marketing campaign. So, SEO becomes crucial for marketers who want to make sure their company is ranked high in results relevant to their brand, products or services. Marketers should view paid search advertising and SEO as complements to each other. With both methods, successful execution means higher rankings in search query results.
For more information on search marketing, or to speak with Mr. Hallerman, contact Samson Adepoju.
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Media Contact:
Samson Adepoju
Public Relations Specialist, eMarketer
Tel. 212-763-6044
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