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Engaging Search Strategies
May 23, 2008
Businesses are looking for solutions online. Are they finding you?
By Alan Isacson
In the world of business-to-business, the Internet acts as very large database. Buyers and specifiers now use it everyday to inform virtually every business decision they make. As such, engaging these professionals as they search for this information is your rich opportunity to articulate value and generate leads.
But how do you stand out in a sea of information beyond just ranking high in search results?
" Enhance Your Search Profile You can start where decision makers begin looking for information: search engines, such as Google, MSN and Yahoo. Using Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to increase ranking during searches—getting listed as close to No. 1 as possible—is an important viable investment. But it is only the beginning: Going the extra step and putting effort into enhancing your overall search engine profile is an opportunity to reach the industry with credible information at the moment they need it.
A search profile is formed by how a company's content permeates the Internet, appearing in multiple locations that appear during a search. For example, a company that makes widgets would appear online when someone types "widgets" into Google. But that person searching for "widgets" may not be inclined to click on manufacturers' Web sites, opting instead to read articles about speeding widget installation or widget customer testimonials. In such cases, a widget manufacturer could use search profile enhancement to improve both the breadth and depth of their provided information. The manufacturer could employ a series of communication techniques and strategies to engage the searcher with an array of meaningful, useful and readily available information.
• Credibility is Key. When searching for information online, business professionals are looking for real information they can use. This is where an integrated public relations (PR) program is essential. Public relations programs produce a continuous flow of content that soon becomes the Internet. As opposed to advertising online, PR becomes part of the information flow instead of a distraction along the way.
The key to the success of a PR credibility campaign is developing a consistent and persistent message. Messaging should be crafted around the business knowledge of your company, but it also should be informed by key words and phrases commonly searched for online. These words can be obtained through SEO tools and should be strategically woven into your messaging. Use these keywords in press releases, thought leadership articles, technical papers and customer testimonials are written continuously and offer the content to both print and online media.
Here are some credibility DO's and DON'Ts:
Don't brag and boast: This is very quickly spotted for what it is: advertising in disguise.
Do offer good advice: Even common knowledge is sometimes appreciated. You don't have to give away industry secrets to be an industry resource.
Do show true vision: No one can predict the future, but showing leadership builds confidence and credibility in your brand.
Don't wait for news to happen: The worst thing you can do is delay communication because you're waiting for the next big technology or customer win. Be persistent and consistent with your communication.
Do focus messages: Focus personnel internally or work with an outside partner to create an manage a credibility program otherwise it will never really happen.
• Create a Feedback Loop. Another key element to leveraging the power of Internet searches is being ready for the user that has ended his or her search on your site by offering in-depth and credible information.
Creating a resource around industry topics or trends offers a way to further build both credibility and enhance a search profile. Posting articles and links to other online offerings turns your site into an online resource. The more a company's own online resource is linked to other Web sites, the higher search engines will rank the site and the more other professionals will find it.
• Advertising and Sponsorship. Part of enhancing your search profile lies in strategically buying sponsorships and links. Some searches can be fairly specialized and creating a link that is sponsored may be the best way of "owning" a search term or set of search terms. Another option is to sponsor e-newsletters or Web sites covering your industry. These types of advertising offer direct access to you at the moment that someone is reading about a particular trend or set of technologies.
• Integrating a Plan. Enhancing a search profile may sound new but it is really based on a very basic and long-standing business ideal: integrating all communication is essential to ensure a consistent and credible message reaches your target audience.
For many companies, in particular business-to-business companies, this integration has never really taken place. The lack of integrated, credible messaging can denounce your business. Sales can spiral down lowering prices as customer engage only in a discussion of cost rather than value. With online forums that compare features and even prices, the Internet can exacerbate the problem and become a barrier rather than a boon. Today, integrated credible content is necessary to ensure higher visibility online and deeper partnerships with customers and prospects online and off.
Perfecting the Process
Enhancing a search engine profile is not an easy one-step process. However it does integrate several elements of communication such as PR, advertising and sales. Bringing together these elements can have a positive impact beyond the Web to reach your target audience in print media, at trade shows and even in direct one-to-one communications. After all, most of us are still in the business of communicating with people. Technology hasn't changed that basic fact—only the means of reaching and engaging them has evolved.
Alan Isacson is president of ABI
Sales & Marketing Management Magazine
This article is brought to you by Sales & Marketing Management, the leading authority for executives in the sales and marketing field.
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