Brands And Search Engines - How Do They Mix?

Article written by: Linda Delp

How important are search engines when it comes to brand
marketing? 73% of the adult population report they are using
the internet today and the number increases every day. Of those
people, 87% are using search engines as their primary method of
finding websites. My point - ignoring search engines in your
brand marketing plan is a major mistake.

Is your brand really affected by search engines?

ClickZ performed a study in April of 2006, which stated 15% of
brand searches strayed from the actual brand being clicked on.
This means the typical brand lost 15% of visitors. Wouldn't you
like to see an increase of 15% in visitors seeing your message?

A survey conducted by The Dieringer Research Group found 45% of
adults say their brand opinions have changed as a result of
advertising and other product information found online.

These are just a couple of studies which show that brand is
affected by search engines. With the number of sites on the
internet increasing dramatically, more and more sites are
appearing in the top results for brand searches other than the
brand itself. Many times it could be negative messages about
your brand. Most companies out there have detractors on the
internet?whether it is news about a lawsuit, disgruntled
employees or just unsatisfied customers.

Have you looked at what the internet is saying about your
company? How good is your visibility in search engines compared
to your competitors and detractors? The good news is there are
ways to counteract these messages. How? By increasing the talk
in favor of your brand on the internet. The more positive
images and messages you have online, the better it is for your
brand. Also, you will be diluting your competitors' and
detractors' messages.

Increase your Brand Presence Online

Organic Search Listings for your Website
Your website is a great marketing and PR tool for your brand.
When customers are directly searching for your brand, you need
to make sure they can find you. Type in your company's name in
Google. Ideally, you should be number one since it is your
company's name and most likely your domain. If you are not
number one, then your website needs to be optimized for search
engines.

Aside from your company name, what keywords do you want people
to associate with your brand? What's your position for these
keywords? If your results are not satisfactory, you need to
explore a search engine optimization program.

Paid Sponsored Listings
Now look at the sponsored listings; do you have a presence
there? You may ask "Should my company be listed in paid if we
are already high in organic listings?"

The answer is almost always yes. You may be thinking why should
I pay for an ad on my company's name when my company is already
showing up first in the non-paid (organic searches)? This is a
very common question. According to recent research, websites
listed at the top of the organic search results and the paid
listings will triple their click-thru ratio.

The fact is everyone views things differently and search
results are no exception. Different users click in different
areas. If someone is researching a product, they are more
likely to look at the organic listings. If they are set on
buying a product, they might look at paid to see if there are
any deals. In eye tracking studies, regardless of reason, some
people are more drawn to organic search listings, while others
are attracted to sponsored results.

Another reason you should be listed in both is your competition
could be showing up in paid search. Therefore, you could be
losing traffic directly to your competition. Policies on
trademark infringement in search engines vary and are difficult
to enforce. Aside from your trademarked terms, your competitors
are bidding on keyword terms that are optimal for your brand.

Another reason for having visibility in both paid and organic
is that it improves the credibility of your message. The more
impressions a visitor sees, the more they think you are a major
player. Aside from increased credibility is increased name
recognition of your brand. Even if you don't receive clicks,
your presence makes an impression on your potential customer. A
study by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and
Nielsen/NetRatings shows that sponsored search ads do improve
brand recognition. Brands with an ad at the top position of a
search engine rose by an average of 14% across six industries
in brand metrics. The brand metrics definitely decrease with
position although it is still higher than no position at all.

Press Releases
Every press release you publish should be optimized for search
engines. Your title, keywords, meta description and content
should all be evaluated when publishing a release. Also, if it
is newsworthy, submitting to the news sites, like Google News,
Yahoo News and any industry news sites will increase the scope.
A search engine-friendly press release increases the chances of
your release being picked up on the search engines.

Blogging
Many corporations have started blogs in an effort to control,
as much as possible, what is being said about your brand. Blogs
are increasingly being indexed and rewarded with high positions,
making them another instrument you can use to get and control
your message online.

Articles and news
Adding news or articles based on your expertise is a great way
to enhance your presence in search engines. Find out what your
target audience is searching for. If you are an e-commerce
site, are users searching for informational articles before
they are purchasing? Generating content about your industry is
a great way to get exposure in the engines.

The bottom line is this, if you are not shaping the messages of
your brand on search engines, someone else is already or will
soon do it for you.

About The Author: Linda Delp writes about SEO, SEM and search
engine optimization, You can contact her through
http://www.albaengine.com