A new kind of results on Internet search engines like Google, called “universal search” results, are leveling the playing field for small businesses when it comes to online marketing, and Cale Guin is out to help take advantage of the technology.
Guin, 40, founded Web 180, his Waukesha-based company, in 2001 to assist businesses in creating, designing and marketing their Web sites. With a service called “search engine optimization,” or providing a search engine with the key words related to the content of a site, Guin helps his customers improve their site’s rank in Google searches by making the sites more relevant to common search words and subjects. Now he is adapting to the results created by universal search.
Also known as “blended search results,” universal search was first implemented by online search engine Google in 2007 to provide search results including videos, photos, news stories and other related content when users enter a query. Before universal search was created, Google offered several different search engines, like “Web,” “images,” “videos,” “maps” and “books,” and searches in these engines returned results only in those categories. Now, these category-specific search engines have been combined into one information system, and results may include a map with local business locations, videos, advertisements or books related to the query.
Guin said universal search is so powerful that sites “a kid created in his basement” can get higher rankings in search results than big-name global companies, which is why it can help small businesses.
Tracking users’ habits
In universal search, search engine sites keep track of a user’s search habits and interests or analyze search terms to determine, for example, whether the user wants to buy something or just research it. It then tailors the results to the individual, so two people could get totally different results for the same search query.
Web 180 has seven employees and more than 100 clients, 10 of which have started to target their sites to universal search. This involves creating more extensive text content, videos related to products, press releases, advertisements and other new site content that will improve the site’s ranking in search engine results.
“It changes everything about the way a business sells itself,” Guin said. “We help companies take advantage of all these different assets.”
It isn’t enough just to have good key words to direct users to a business’ Web site; now the site needs video and photo content to attract potential customers to the site, Guin said.
The goal should be to drive traffic to the site, not to become the No. 1 hit on a search engine, Guin said. This traffic ideally converts to sales, which is why universal search is used mainly for marketing.
Web 180 tries to use its customers’ existing advertising and marketing materials by, for example, publishing a client’s TV commercials on YouTube or posting printed materials that were created for trade shows on the business’s Web site to increase site traffic.
Web 180 caters mostly to local small and midsize businesses. Guin said the goal is to provide small businesses with the same solutions as big businesses have. Web 180 works with all different industries to achieve those results, even reverse engineering programs and features that emulate larger businesses.
Important for small firms
Terry Van Horne, founder of industry trade organization Search Engine Optimization Professionals, said “search engine optimizers” like Guin who are working with universal search are at the cutting edge of the industry, since many Web professionals don’t understand it yet. He said local business results are key for small businesses like those Web 180 serves.
Guin said for a typical search engine optimization project, Web 180 offers packages from $360, and otherwise charges $90 hourly. The search engine optimization package includes a universal search consultation. He also works with other companies to offer paid advertising and “maps” results for his customers.
Steve Herro, education director of Automobile Dealers Association of Mega Milwaukee, said he has been working with Web 180 since he assumed his role as education director three years ago.
ADAMM is a trade association that provides dealership sales merchandise like key tags and banners to about 120 auto dealerships. Previously, ADAMM had a simple Web site, but Herro said the association is trying to market its products to a larger client base because of dwindling auto sales.
Web 180 recently created for ADAMM an online store open to the public and entered each product it sells into universal search, so a customer looking for a specific product, rather than the ADAMM company name, can still find that product.
“They’ve really worked on our site to make our products much more searchable,” Herro said.
Web 180 has seen constant growth and, in spite of the economy, has already seen 30 percent growth in 2009, Guin said. Annual sales for the firm typically range from $300,000 to $500,000.
In the long term, Web 180 wants to expand by picking up more national clients. So far, most of the current client base is in Milwaukee.
And though it wasn’t the first to offer universal search services, Guin said Web 180 is forging the path locally.
“We’re excited that we’re in this position,” Guin said, “but I wish we had more competition in this area to measure our progress.”
A SEARCH FOR IDEAS
Cale Guin offered the following tips for businesses adapting to universal/blended search:
* Rank isn’t as important. When considering an online plan, remember it’s about creating buzz with content on your site and in other online spaces, such as YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. Review sites, online news coverage and online news release postings are also excellent ways to get out your message.
* Content is king. Fresh, keyword-related content still wins, but now some of that content must be in the form of video, images, reviews, news or social networks.
* Do your homework. When choosing keywords to focus on, research the keywords to make sure people are using them, then manage your content and assets around them.
* Be patient. Big results don’t happen overnight.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment