Web-SEO Presentation

PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKINGWEB-SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION

April 2010

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

BACKGROUND

This Web-SEO benchmarking survey is a follow on to the

previous Strategic Marketing study*

The earlier study, along with a review of Jay Levinson’s

classic Guerrilla Marketing, led The Executive Forum to

suggest a focus on Web and Search Engine Optimization

*Results of the earlier study can be viewed at http://vimeo.com/9389300


CURRENT STATUS

Nearly every company in the survey has had a corporate website for ten years or more

Significant upgrades, however, have been infrequent

35%55%

10%

Within the past two yearsMore than two years agoNever

When is the last time you made a major revision to your site?


YOUR WEB PRESENCE

Barely a quarter of the respondents have a very favorable view of their site

A slightly higher percentage of people describe their site as very basic and static

32%42%

26%

We have a pretty basic, static web siteWe have a web site of average quality compared to our competitorsOur site is content rich and considered to be a leader in our industry

Which of the following statements best describes your web site?


WEB CONTENT

The vast majority of companies have links to other sites and downloadable content

There is very little else in the way of rich content for visitors to experience

Which of the following can be found on your web site?

Case Studies/Client Testimonials

White Papers/Research

Videos

Links to Other Sites

Company Newsletters

Other Downloadable

Content

Social Media Links


WEB TRAFFIC

Most visitors are looking at product and service information

But a large number of companies don’t know what visitors are interested in

A great “Other” answer was: educational content!

21%

53%

26%

Don’t knowProduct/Service infoOther

What are the most frequently used/visited features of your web site?


FRESH CONTENT

Nearly 4 out of 5 companies in the survey are updating their websites very infrequently

How often do you update your site with fresh content?

5%

16%

47%

32%

WeeklyMonthlyA few times a yearHardly ever


SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION

Analysis of your search engine performance can be done quickly and inexpensively -- and is the best way to determine what types of improvements to make

Have you ever optimized your site for search engine visibility - known as Search Engine Optimization or SEO?

Companies that have performed SEO47%

Companies that have NOT performed SEO53%


SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION

A majority of companies are not sure how to optimize the visibility of their sites on the major search engines.

Do you have a clear idea what it would take to improve your site’s search engine performance?

No58%

Yes42%


WEB TRAFFIC

A majority of companies in the study do not analyze traffic to their site

This analysis is not difficult to perform - and can lead to important insights about customers and prospects

Do you analyze your web traffic -- for instance tracking which pages are most frequently visited -- and act upon

this information?

No53%

Yes47%


Our site doesn't get much attention42%

We get decent traffic, but minimal "conversion"21%

Our site is an important source of sales leads21%

We can clearly attribute revenue to the website16%

THE WEB & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Nearly 2/3 of the companies report that the web plays a marginal role in supporting sales

Less than 1 in 5 can clearly attribute sales to their web presence

Which statement best describes the role the web plays in your marketing and sales efforts?


SOCIAL MEDIA

It is important to note that nearly 40% of the respondents are not active on social media

For those that are, LinkedIn and Facebook are the main vehicles

“Other” responses: YouTube and Blogs

Are you or your company active on any of the following?

0

3

5

8

10

LinkedInFacebook

TwitterOther


SOCIAL MEDIA & THE FUTURE

A clear majority believe that Social Media can impact their companies’ performance

Those who don’t, should probably ... think again!

Do you believe that Social Media Marketing could have a positive impact on your company’s performance in the next

12-24 months?

Yes68%

No32%


SOCIAL MEDIA OPTIONS

For those that see Social Media impacting their companies’ performance, the vast majority are focused on LinkedIn and Facebook

Which Social Media channels are likely to have the greatest impact on your company?

50%

28%

6% 17%

LinkedInFacebookTwitterOther


CHANGES- A SPLIT DECISION

This was a “free text” response, so there was great variety in the responses

A majority, however, had specific changes in mind (e-Commerce, Blogs and search engine performance)

The most common answer was: not sure or don’t know

What one thing would you like to change about your web presence?

26%

21%16%

16%

21%

Not sure/Don’t knowe-CommerceSEO performanceA blogOther


NEW FEATURES

While the jury was split again on a free text question, there was a lot of specificity to the respondents answers

What one new feature would you like to incorporate into your web site?

32%

26%16%

11%11%

5%

Video/TestimonialsSupport for salesA blogSEO performanceImproved contentNot sure/Don’t know


CONCLUSIONS

The benchmarking data suggests lots of possibilities for

growing your web presence

The following slides offer 10 steps you can take immediately

(okay, not all at once, but still ...)


TAKEAWAYS

If you haven’t already, check out the earlier Strategic Marketing study


TAKEAWAYS

If you haven’t already, check out the earlier Strategic Marketing study


TAKEAWAYS

If you haven’t updated your site in more than two years, you probably should


TAKEAWAYS

If you haven’t updated your site in more than two years, you probably should


TAKEAWAYS

If you don’t have links to other sites and downloadable content ... get ‘em!


TAKEAWAYS

If you don’t have links to other sites and downloadable content ... get ‘em!


TAKEAWAYS

Think about Case Studies, Client Testimonials, White Papers, Research & Videos


TAKEAWAYS

Think about Case Studies, Client Testimonials, White Papers, Research & Videos


TAKEAWAYS

If you don’t know what people are checking out on your site, find out!


TAKEAWAYS

If you don’t know what people are checking out on your site, find out!


TAKEAWAYS

If you do know what visitors are checking out, ENGAGE them


TAKEAWAYS

If you do know what visitors are checking out, ENGAGE them


TAKEAWAYS

Commit to updating your site with something (anything!) new every month


TAKEAWAYS

Commit to updating your site with something (anything!) new every month


TAKEAWAYS

Analyze your search engine performance; it’s easy - and an eye opener!


TAKEAWAYS

Analyze your search engine performance; it’s easy - and an eye opener!


TAKEAWAYS

If you’re not getting leads from your web site, engage key accounts about it


TAKEAWAYS

If you’re not getting leads from your web site, engage key accounts about it


TAKEAWAYS

Consider Social Media; start simple and build from there


TAKEAWAYS

Consider Social Media; start simple and build from there


OneStepBeyond

1415 Macon Avenue

Pittsburgh, PA 15218

412.849.7261

[email protected]

BRYAN J. FISCHER

THANKS!If you are interested in more information or have questions or

comments, please don’t hesitate to contact me.


Web-SEO Presentation

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