As with a lot of things Internet based there is as much data around the necessity to optimise a site as is possible to circulate, appreciate and act upon, but, is it possible that there are some businesses and websites that need to carefully consider the results of an effective Online Marketing campaign.
Received Internet wisdom would have you believe that the only way to do any business on the web is to be ranked highly enough through successful Search Engine Placement that your site appears on page 1 of Google. Any and all companies are encouraged to acquire optimisation services via a ethical Search Engine Optimization Company and carry out a system of ensuring that their website is evident to the virtual market. However an effective Online Marketing campaign may well open the site and the business to much greater numbers of possible clients than can be handled using the existing business processes, resources and structure.
Unlike old fashioned retailing, where, to some degree, business hours and the accessibility of the goods or service can be controlled, the fully optimised website is available for business 24 hours day, across several time zones and with a virtual market of millions. If the optimization process has been adopted instead of pay per click, it cannot be turned off. Even if the work is halted, it will take weeks, maybe a number of months before the organisation falls off page 1.
The initial results of a successful Search Engine Placement scheme will be a massive increase in hits on the website and almost certainly a massive increase in the qualification and follow up of larger numbers of leads. The question many companies will have to ask is whether they are able to deal with larger numbers of enquiries and requests for information, many of which will not end in a purchase.
If the Search Engine Optimisation Company has done a good job then increased visitors should, (assuming all other elements of the plan are in place), lead to massive increase in the volume of sales. Sounds good, but the question is can the organisation support this higher level of activity, I would suggest there is nothing that is more frustrating for both sellers and buyers than to have a mass of people ready to spend and the Company being unable to meet demand. In most cases this will lead to clients leaving the Company in question and going to where they can get the service or product, even if they have to pay more.
The problem of course is that there is not a lot a organisation can do about the volume of traffic once it hits page 1, the question the marketers need to answer in these companies is whether they on page 1 at all.
The frequently quoted statistic of over 90% of all purchases being made from page 1 is only appropriate if a piece of the remaining 10% is all you need to meet your business objectives. Study of the market may reveal that being listed on page four, five or six may be all that is needed. More is not always better.
