| Search Engines are one of the most popular methods | | | | ads are the most expensive because the program |
| of finding information in the 21st century. Gone are | | | | attracts the attention a millions of 18-35 year old men |
| the days of opening an encyclopedia to find the | | | | who tend to spend quite a bit of money on |
| answer to a question or skimming the yellow pages | | | | consumer products, thus the crazy amount of |
| to locate a local specialist. Search engines are helping | | | | money that is spent of advertising.With search, |
| us tackle every conceivable problem that we happen | | | | however, the information that is collected helps us |
| to face in our daily life. Need to do research on the | | | | target our websites (which are a basically |
| Civil War? Car having problems? Curious about | | | | commercials that run 24 hours a day) to a more |
| evolution? The possibilities are only limited by your | | | | specific audience; we can actually pinpoint roughly |
| imagination. Search Engines provide a means to | | | | how many people searched for the words "ford |
| possibly answer any question that anybody has at | | | | mustang parts". Now if you are someone who sells |
| any time. So how can this help us in promoting our | | | | ford mustang parts, this information is very important |
| business?To start, let's discuss how search engines | | | | to you. Ten years ago, the only way of marketing |
| work, without boring you with too much. Search | | | | your business would be to purchase advertising that |
| engines consist of a number of very sophisticated | | | | probably targeted a large number of people, usually in |
| software programs that gather and organize | | | | a car trade magazine. You would have a good idea |
| information from the internet. The first important | | | | about your audience, but you didn't have any real |
| program is called a "robot spider" that is used to | | | | numbers of how many people were looking for your |
| index, or "find" pages posted on the internet. The | | | | product. With search engine marketing, it's possible to |
| search engine then uses an algorithm, or | | | | focus marketing campaigns on just people that are |
| mathematical equation, to determine how important a | | | | actually looking for the products or services you sell, |
| web page is in relation to a particular word or phrase | | | | saving you precious time and money that would |
| (referred to as keywords or keyword phrases.)Let's | | | | otherwise be wasted on those not interested in you. |
| use an example to better understand this concept. | | | | This is why search engine marketing is especially |
| Say you went to and entered the words "los angeles | | | | important to the small business owner, who usually |
| pizza". The results are numbered starting with #1; | | | | does not have deep pockets to spend on marketing |
| Google is telling you that, based on its very | | | | and advertising to begin with.Search Engine Marketing |
| sophisticated mathematical equation, that the number | | | | has taken the business world by storm, and has |
| one listing is the most relevant web page for the | | | | propelled search engines like Google to become huge, |
| words "los angeles". Hopefully, that # 1 listing will | | | | billion dollar corporations through their advertising |
| provide you with the information you are looking | | | | revenues. Traditional media has begun to transform |
| for.Now imagine if you were a pizza shop owner in | | | | as the barriers between television, radio, print, and |
| Los Angeles, and your websites home page just so | | | | the internet begin to blur. The internet has introduced |
| happened to be that # 1 listing on Google. You don't | | | | a new performance-based marketing and advertising |
| have to be a rocket scientist to see how this listing is | | | | platform that will spill over into these other forms of |
| an important marketing tool for your pizza | | | | advertising. Understanding the actual process of |
| business.Now, before you jump out of your seat, | | | | marketing your website through these search engines |
| hold on, because it gets better. Another software | | | | is crucial in understanding how the marketing industry |
| program the search engines use has the ability to | | | | is evolving but requires a balance of research and |
| keep track of how many times a word or phrase is | | | | continuous implementation. If you don't act now, this |
| being searched. This is where the dynamics of search | | | | new world of marketing and advertising could mean |
| engine marketing really start to shine.In traditional | | | | big profits for your competition while leaving you |
| marketing, like television or radio, demographics are | | | | behind with the rest of those unwilling to embrace |
| used to determine what audience you should target | | | | technology.Eric Hebert is president of evolvor media, |
| your business to. A commercial for a kid's cereal | | | | an internet marketing and content development |
| would probably be shown during a children's television | | | | solutions firm. His passion includes introducing the |
| show. TV companies would charge more for an ad | | | | internet to business, and looks foward to being a |
| spot that ran during a show that attracted more | | | | part of the transformation many businesses are |
| viewers for a specific "target market". Super Bowl | | | | experiencing as technology develops. |