The Article Blog

Ok, here is the scenario. Your website is an under performer, it’s buried under local and national competitors who have managed to grab all the top search engine positions and potential online customers simply can’t find you.  Your mission, should you wish to accept it, is to turn your under performer into a valuable, profit generating business asset.

As an Edinburgh Internet Marketing Consultant I hear this scenario time and time again. I find it frustrating that so much money gets invested in developing the look and feel of a website without any thought to the effectiveness of the marketing message or the medium used to deliver it. I am sure that I have upset a few website owners (and their developers) by telling them that their website is clearly unfit for purpose.

Normally SEO is an afterthought that only comes into play after the website is launched and the expected flood of leads or sales evaporates into wishful thinking. In this process the conversation throughout the development has been between the developer and the website owner. Often the output of this process results in a website that showcases company goals while excluding those of the customer.

In an ideal situation the SEO process should start before any development or design work is undertaken. Why? Initial research into who your target customers are, their wants and needs and the content, resources and tools they need to accomplish those goals will guide both content development, site structure and usability. Trying to accomplish this as a retro fit after going live with a website, can be an awkward, expensive and time consuming task.

There are occasions when hiring an SEO company might not be the best solution to poor search engine visibility. For example, it may be difficult to justify the price of outsourcing your SEO requirements and realising a worthwhile ROI if:

• our customer acquisition cost is low.
• The average customer lifetime spend is low.

If you feel you belong in this category SEO Training often represents a realistic solution as long as you are prepared to roll up your sleeves and take some time to learn the ropes. Be assured that SEO is not some form of esoteric knowledge known only to industry professionals, but is rather a form of knowledge that you can quickly learn and apply yourself. 

There are many useful SEO resources online, both free and paid, to help you on your way and you can ask questions on SEO related forums. Many UK SEO companies also offer public SEO Training seminars and one-to-one bespoke training/consultation based on your current website. Here are a few:

• Syllabus SEO Training UK
• SEO Training Scotland
• Design Insite SEO Training

It All Starts By Gaining an Understanding of Your Target Customer

However, before you start thinking about SEO spend some time considering who your target customers are and the resources they will need to achieve their goals. This will make it easier to:

Map out the individual pages of your site.

• Fit those pages into an overall site structure.
• Create an effective a comprehensive keyword list for each page.

Why SEO training?

More than 75% of Internet users refer to search engines to find information, products and services.

78% of users refine their query if the three pages of results fail to provide the information they seek.

These trends highlight the importance of top search engine rankings and when combined with the fact that no one knows your customers, your products and your marketing goals better than you promotes SEO Training to an important business skill.